October 30
Morning surface water temperatures are about 67-68 degrees inshore around Little River.
The inshore fishing has been good this October at the top of South Carolina’s coast, but based on the brief glimpse into the future they got last week Captain Buddy Love of Captain Smiley Fishing Charters (843-361-7445) expects November to be outstanding, particularly for trout. When water temperatures dipped to about 65 degrees for a few days the fishing was incredible, with better numbers and bigger fishing showing up. As soon as temperatures returned to the upper 60s the action fell off, but they are still picking up some trout.
Meanwhile the redfish and black drum have still been biting well on live shrimp fished on slip cork rigs around oyster beds and creeks mouths on moving tides. The rise has been best, although the falling tide has also been productive for both species as well as some flounder and trout. But moving water is imperative to get fish eating.
While 90% of the flounder are already gone, it’s clear that the trout are just starting to show up in real numbers. In addition to live shrimp they will take Vudu shrimp, Gulp!, and other artificials bounced along the bottom.
The red drum in the inlet continue to be hit-or-miss, but even though there are some very good days they are too inconsistent to mess with that often – especially on charters who expect to catch fish! Off the beaches and at the reefs weakfish are around, and bonita will also take small spoons if you have them ready to throw.
Fishing off the Cherry Grove Pier (843-249-1625) has been strong this week, with lots of spot, croaker and whiting caught as well as trout and some keeper weakfish. They had a push of bull drum a week ago but not much action this week, and with a run of king mackerel to the north they hope there is still one more cycle to come.
October 16
Morning surface water temperatures are about 67-68 degrees inshore around Little River and the mullet are running.
With very rare exceptions the inshore fishing has been outstanding at the top of the Grand Strand, and Captain Buddy Love of Captain Smiley Fishing Charters (843-361-7445) reports that even though the flounder are about gone everything else is turning on. While trout numbers aren’t what they will be they are catching some bigger fish, and on this pace November will be pretty phenomenal. Fishing with live shrimp in known trout areas they would probably be catching more, as the fish they are getting so far have just come on mullet. There are also a decent number of redfish around and they have have also picked up some striped bass in the IntraCoastal on mullet, which is always exciting for saltwater anglers. They are also catching black drum and even sheepshead around structure on live shrimp.
The last of the rise and the first of the fall has been the best time to fish for pretty much everything inshore, and the high fall has been particularly good.
At the jetties the bite for big red drum has been hit-or-miss, and there have been some phenomenal days where every boat hooks up 20-plus times. But then the next day they might only catch two.
On the nearshore reefs the weakfish don’t seem to have made it up yet.
October 3
Morning surface water temperatures are about 75 degrees inshore around Little River and the water is murky with all the freshwater inflow.
While storm-related factors have limited their fishing trips at the top of South Carolina’s coast this week, things are getting back to more normal and Captain Buddy Love of Captain Smiley Fishing Charters (843-361-7445) reports that today on the water they continued to find a very good bite. As the tide began to fall they caught a big bull drum at the jetties. For now there are some around although they are not getting them every day, but it is getting better.
Inshore the fishing continues to be wide open, and fishing the creek banks in 2-5 feet of water with live mullet you can catch nice trout, redfish and flounder. Very quickly today they released several under-sized flounder as well as 17- and 20-inch fish, several slot reds, and multiple trout up to 20 inches.
A mixed grade of black drum is also still around, and the time to catch them is still the last of the falling tide around structure. They haven’t caught any today because they are not fishing shrimp.
Wind has limited the ability to get nearshore, but when they last could there were good king mackerel around.
September 25
Morning surface water temperatures are around 76-78 degrees around Little River and the water clarity has improved – for now. Mullet are everywhere.
Once again the inshore fishing has been outstanding this week at the top of South Carolina’s coast, and Captain Buddy Love of Captain Smiley Fishing Charters (843-361-7445) reports that the flounder fishing has been pretty unbelievable. They are catching 4-8 keepers each day including some monster fish up to 8.7 pounds, all in South Carolina waters. Fish are around the creek banks and oyster beds, and the high falling tide has been best. However, as long as there is moving water fish are feeding. With mullet so abundant they are the bait of choice, rigged simply on a Carolina rig.
While they are targeting flounder they are picking up 3-6 good redfish per day on the same pattern, but the reds are biting best on lower stages of the tide. There have also been a few trout mixed in, but they have not showed up in large numbers yet.
Finally, the black drum fishing continues to be strong and on the last of the falling tide and at low water they are catching good numbers of fish around structure. Fresh shrimp continue to be the best bait.
September 12
Morning surface water temperatures are down to around 78 degrees at Little River and the water is still pretty dirty.
The inshore fishing has been outstanding this week at the top of our coast, and Captain Buddy Love of Captain Smiley Fishing Charters (843-361-7445) reports that in particular the flounder are biting very well. They are catching them on the rising tide in about 3 feet of water along grass lines, around creek mouths and around oyster beds. Basically it’s like “power fishing” for freshwater bass where you hit a lot of likely targets. The fish are definitely preferring mullet over mud minnows, and the bigger baits have been generating more big bites. The keeper ratio has been really good this week, and on three successive trips they caught a fish over 20 inches as well as lots of 17- and 18-inch fish!
Black drum are also biting very well, particularly on the lower fall. They are around structure like oysters and docks in 3-7 feet of water, but they are getting pickier about what they will eat. They basically only want very fresh dead shrimp or live ones. Other fresh crustaceans such as crabs would probably work too.
The redfish are in the same areas as flounder, but there aren’t a ton of them around right now. Basically they are getting 1-3 per flounder trip. Trout have also been something of a by-catch, and so far they haven’t seen any great reports in South Carolina. But it could be a literally a matter of days until the bite is wide open as temperatures drop.
While it’s been too rough to fish the jetties or nearshore, an 80-pound tarpon was caught inside the inlet. The bull reds don’t really seem to be running yet but if you put in enough time there are already a few around. The Spanish are undoubtedly still here but you just can’t easily get to them.
August 29
Morning surface water temperatures have dipped to about 79 at Little River and the water is still very dirty.
Muddy water hasn’t slowed the bite at all, and Captain Buddy Love of Captain Smiley Fishing Charters (843-361-7445) reports that inshore fishing has been on fire the last week. The last trip out they caught 30-35 black drum, 10 sheepshead, and 4 redfish. There have also been some scattered trout reports but they haven’t really been targeting them.
The key to catching everything has been fishing skinny water on lower tides around shell banks – with live shrimp. On higher tides the bite is still decent along shell banks – as long as you have shrimp.
Captain Buddy has never seen fish show this strong a preference for shrimp, and on a recent trip they could literally see redfish swimming around their live finger mullet offerings but paying no attention. Finally they decided to try shrimp, and in the next ten minutes caught a 31-inch, 21-inch and 22-inch redfish.
While flounder are also eating shrimp they are about the only species still showing a preference for finger mullet.
Finally, yesterday Buddy headed 50 miles offshore and found a really good bottom fishing bite for vermillion snapper and triggerfish as well as catching some grouper and red snapper they could not keep.
August 15
Morning surface water temperatures are around 83 at Little River, and the water is extremely dirty. Shrimp have gotten scarce but finger mullet are around.
After the storm water temperatures dropped from the high 80s into the high 70s, but Captain Buddy Love of Captain Smiley Fishing Charters (843-361-7445) reports that they have now rebounded a few degrees. But the bigger story is the water color, and literally everywhere in the area (in part because of the Cape Fear River) the water looks like Folger’s coffee.
Still there has been some really good post-storm inshore fishing, and the creeks are alive with plenty of black drum and redfish. For both species a majority are under-sized, but there are also lots of better fish mixed in. The key for black drum has been fishing fresh cut shrimp on the bottom on the falling tide around creek mouths and oyster bars.
Reds are in the same areas, but fishing with finger mullet greatly increases your chances of catching them. There are more big reds at the jetties but that’s not wide open yet.
There are also flounder around, and they have caught a few since the hurricane. However, they aren’t biting as well in the low visibility conditions – nor are the trout. Trout are scattered in with the reds but the water is so dirty that they aren’t feeding very well. It’s also been very difficult to get shrimp, their preferred food right now.
There are a few Spanish mackerel on the beaches, mostly small, but as the mullet run fires up – and if there is no major rain event again – within 10-12 days they should get much more prolific.
August 1
Morning surface water temperatures are still in the mid-80s around Little River, and with so much rain the falling tide has been pretty dirty. Mullet and menhaden are showing up in really good numbers.
It’s brutally hot summer fishing with water temperatures fluctuating between 84 and 89, but Captain Buddy Love of Captain Smiley Fishing Charters (843-361-7445) reports that as long as you take advantage of your inshore opportunities and make the bites count you can catch flounder, trout and redfish.
On the flounder front it seems that the South Carolina fish have been hammered, and while you can catch 3 or 4 short fish in a creek mouth on the falling tide when you go to North Carolina 20-inchers are pretty reliable – like yesterday and today. In both places finger mullet are working very well.
With dirty water conditions the better trout fishing has been coming on the rising tide, and they are picking them up along grass lines and creek banks. Most of the fish are smaller but there are some good 19-20 inch fish as well. Shrimp are the go-to bait but they will also eat artificials like Vudu Shrimp.
At low water the best redfish action has been taking place, and on the last of the fall and first of the rise they are catching slot-sized fish (with a few over) on finger mullet in the shallows around oysters and bait. However, it’s not every day and one day they will bite and then the next day nothing. The young of the year fish do not seem to have showed up yet.
It's been too rough for nearshore fishing.
July 18
Morning surface water temperatures are still in the mid-80s around Little River, and the water has gotten very dirty. Bait is abundant.
Big rain at the end of last week shook up the water conditions at the top of the South Carolina coast, and Captain Buddy Love of Captain Smiley Fishing Charters (843-361-7445) reports that as a result the fishing has dropped off a little. That the rain was followed by 20-25 mile per hour winds hasn’t helped the water clarity or the fishing conditions!
Nonetheless, inshore they are still managing some flounder on both sides of the border, and one boat actually landed a 28-inch, 7.2 pounder in South Carolina this week! The best action recently has been coming on the falling tide at the mouths of creeks and ditches where they drain into bigger water, and with lots of finger mullet around they are working very well. Shrimp are also scattered everywhere but of course everything eats them.
The redfish have also been eating pretty well along the grass lines this week, and the best time to look for them has been both sides of low tide in just a couple of feet of water around the edges. They will be wherever there are schools of mullet going back and forth.
Black drum are abundant around deep structure but the keeper ratio is very low, while the trout fishing is extremely spotty in the dirty water.
As noted the wind has made getting off the beaches very difficult, but when they were able to get nearshore there were some flounder and black sea bass at the reefs. Spanish mackerel are very hard to find right now.
July 11
Morning surface water temperatures are at least 85 around Little River, and sometimes higher.
It’s still a good summer inshore bite at the top of the South Carolina coast, and Captain Buddy Love of Captain Smiley Fishing Charters (843-361-7445) reports that they are catching a little bit of everything – and a lot of some things!
The falling tide has been consistent for flounder and redfish around the creek banks and where feeder creeks empty out, and they are catching both species on finger mullet and mud minnows. The flounder have run up to 21 inches this week, and last week they had a 23-incher at kids’ camp. Keepers have been fairly regular. They are also catching some flounder in the inlet.
The trout bite has also been pretty good, and the key has been fishing live shrimp under a slip cork in areas without too many pinfish. They are catching them over shell beds in the larger creeks when there is moving water.
They are also catching an absolute ton of black drum this way, but unfortunately only about 1 out of 10 is over 13 inches.
Off the beaches and nearshore, the Spanish mackerel fishing has picked up a little again. There aren’t that many fish around but the ones that are have been big. They will take spoons trolled on planer boards.
June 26
Morning surface water temperatures are in the low 80s around Little River.
Even though they are seeing 88-89 degrees water temperatures at times, Captain Buddy Love of Captain Smiley Fishing Charters (843-361-7445) reports that they are finding a surprisingly good inshore bite. All four major inshore species are biting right now, and even though the black drum bite appears to finally be slowing down, and the fish getting smaller, they are still catching some decent fish at the mouths of creeks. While they will take live shrimp, there are so many bait stealers around right now that you might as well fish cut shrimp or else you will run through a ton of live bait.
The flounder fishing is going in waves right now, and it seems like on the big new and full moon tides fish are migrating inshore to spawn. Last week was awesome for the flounder, but then this week it seems like the big females have gone back to the reefs and they are mainly catching smaller males.
Trout fishing has been pretty consistent, and on the rising tide they are catching fish on live shrimp in 3-5 feet of water. Scattered shell bottoms seem to hold the most fish, and some of them have been on main points while others are in smaller creeks. Right now there are lots of small to medium trout around.
On the falling tide the best action for redfish has been taking place, and Captain Buddy reports that they can’t seem to catch a red on shrimp right now. They are basically on a mud minnow and finger mullet bite.
Additionally, the inshore shark fishing has been very good both in the inlets and on the beaches.
Nearshore, the Spanish mackerel fishing has really slowed down with the dirty water. The fish were already getting more finicky after months of getting hammered, but then the hard winds really did them in. Fishing at the 3-Mile has also been really tough.
June 6
Morning surface water temperatures range from about 78-82 degrees around Little River and the water looks pretty clear. The mullet are mostly too small for bait but there are lots of menhaden around.
For inshore fishing the highlight at the top of South Carolina’s coast continues to be the flounder, and Captain Buddy Love of Captain Smiley Fishing Charters (843-361-7445) reports that on this new moon some really good ones moved in. Before that they seemed be holding at the reefs for a few days, but they have now moved inside. Their personal highlight this week was a 5.32 pound, 24-inch fish! The best fishing has been on the falling tide, and with tons of small flounder still around the best way to minimize short fish is to use menhaden or jumbo mud minnows. It’s nothing to catch 5 or 6 short fish very fast in a lot of spots.
The redfish action has been best on the low, rising tide, and now the fish seem to prefer mud minnows over anything else including shrimp.
But the trout are a different story, and they are still showing a strong preference for live shrimp. In the creeks and waterways there are some nice fish in moving water, mostly in the 5-7 foot range. When you can find moving water at that depth around some sort of structure the chances for finding a group of trout go way up.
Of course they are still picking up some black drum on shrimp, and while Captain Buddy hasn’t been out there much there are fair reports for all species at the jetties.
The nearshore fishing for Spanish mackerel is super up-and-down, perhaps as a result of pressure making the fish skittish and perhaps because they are coming in waves. Daylight is definitely the best time to troll for them right now. Buddy has had some days where they catch 25-30 fish in a couple of hours, and then others where they have to work hard to catch 10. The fact that they have been beat on for months now can’t be helping.
Tons of small bluefish are also mixed in with the catch.
May 23
Morning surface water temperatures are around 73-74 degrees off the beach in Little River and similar inshore. Bait is scattered around with a few smaller finger mullet in the creeks and some menhaden in the waterways and off the beaches.
It’s still a good inshore bite at the top of the Grand Strand, and Captain Buddy Love of Captain Smiley Fishing Charters (843-361-7445) reports that in particular more flounder are showing up this week in both North and South Carolina. The action is still better down around Pawley’s Island and Murrells Inlet, but they caught a half-dozen fish including a couple of keepers earlier this week. For now it’s a pretty standard mud minnow bite and the best fishing has been at the end of the rising tide and late in the falling tide.
Meanwhile the action for redfish has picked up on the low to rising tide in deep holes back in the creeks, and Captain Buddy reports that the fishing are almost singularly focused on eating mud minnows. They are also catching trout in the same holes on mud minnows and had seven yesterday.
Black drum are in the same areas and around structure, but to target them fresh cut shrimp or crab sections are the key.
May 15
Morning surface water temperatures are around 71 degrees off the beach in Little River and 70-71 inshore. Bait is scattered around with a few smaller finger mullet in the creeks and some menhaden in the waterways and off the beaches.
Even though the rain has cooled the water off a little the inshore bite has been good at the top of the coast, and Captain Buddy Love of Captain Smiley Fishing Charters (843-361-7445) reports that they are catching all the major species. Black drum are still biting well on the rising and falling tide with cut shrimp fished around structure and ledges, and you will also pick up some redfish in the same areas on the same bait. But redfish are feeding the best from dead low to the low rising tide around the mouths of creeks and shell beds, and they are also eating mud minnows. There are a few smaller flounder around but the better flounder action for bigger fish is so far up around Cherry Grove.
If you fish live shrimp on the low, rising tide you can also catch trout and they have had some good ones up to 22 inches.
Nearshore, until the rain the Spanish mackerel fishing was still on fire from 3 miles in to the beaches, and it should pick up again very soon. There are also a few king mackerel being caught on the piers but the rain mostly pushed them deeper. A few cobia are also showing up.
May 1
Morning surface water temperatures are around 69 degrees off the beach in Little River.
It’s an absolutely incredible bite nearshore right now, and Captain Buddy Love of Captain Smiley Fishing Charters (843-361-7445) reports that the trolling is so good that they can’t pull more than two rods for Spanish mackerel most of the time. It’s not uncommon to catch 30 plus fish in an hour and a half, and the bluefish are also pretty thick. The bonito have mostly moved north or further offshore, but the first king mackerel are starting to show up off North Carolina piers with more fish out over live bottom in 60 feet or so. There are also still plenty of weakfish around.
Inshore the black drum fishing continues to be the best thing going around docks and oyster beds on cut shrimp. It’s not unusual to catch a dozen fish with most of them keepers in an hour or so, and right now the falling tide seems to be the best for everything.
Creek mouths and structure are also producing some trout and redfish on the dropping tide, and if you can’t get live shrimp mud minnows are working well. But at any moment the trout could start feeding better on clean, rising water again. There are also still plenty of reds back in holes in the smaller creeks.
The flounder fishing still has not gotten hot in the Little River area, but more and more fish are showing up in Cherry Grove and any day now the action should move into Little River.
April 25
Morning surface water temperatures are around 67 degrees off the beach in Little River.
Even after a cold front came through over the weekend and early in the week, Captain Buddy Love of Captain Smiley Fishing Charters (843-361-7445) reports that they were pleasantly surprised by how little effect a water temperature drop of several degrees had on the fish. In particular the black drum continued to bite very well around docks and oyster beds, with cut shrimp the best bait.
The trout have also been biting pretty well on the rising tide when there is clean water coming in around creek mouths, with live shrimp the best bait. Floating baits over oyster bars has led to some of the best action.
They have also caught some redfish in holes back in the small creeks on lower water, and their first keeper floundercame this week. The best action for flounder has come around creek mouths, oyster bars and grass lines on the last of the rising tide and the beginning of the falling tide. Mullet are too big for bait right now but mud minnows are working well.
The nearshore reef fishing continues to be surprisingly good, and Captain Buddy reports the Atlantic bonito are stillaround. There are also big gray trout on the reefs, and the Spanish mackerel are getting more prolific every day. In addition to trolling they can be caught casting jigging spoons.
April 19
Morning surface water temperatures are around 64 degrees off the beach in Little River.
The flounder are arriving in the Little River area, and Captain Buddy Love of Captain Smiley Fishing Charters (843-361-7445) reports that fish are showing up in droves. For right now (as always, frankly) there are a lot of sub-keepers, but there are also a fair number of fish over 16 inches being caught. Mud minnows have been out-fishing everything else.
Black drum continue to bite well around structure, with cut shrimp the best bait. There has also been a slight uptick in the trout fishing this week, with perhaps a few migratory fish starting to move in. Live shrimp are the key.
For flounder, black drum and trout the best action has been on falling water, while the best pattern for redfish has been skinny water on the low rising tide. When you locate redfish they have not been finicky about what baits they will eat.
The nearshore reef fishing continues to be pretty fantastic when you can get out there, and Captain Buddy reports the Atlantic bonito are still around but that can’t last too much longer. There are also big gray trout on the reefs, and the Spanish mackerel are getting more prolific every day. In addition to trolling they can be caught casting jigging spoons.
April 11
Morning surface water temperatures are around 63-64 degrees off the beach in Little River.
The fishing has picked up again in the Little River area, and Captain Buddy Love of Captain Smiley Fishing Charters (843-361-7445) reports that inshore the best action continues to be for black drum. They are around most any structure in the waterways and will eat cut shrimp. The falling tide has been preferred but the bite also continues to improve on the rising tide behind oyster mounds or other cover just inside creeks when the fish can first get back in there.
There are also some redfish being caught on the same pattern, but they have been a little more scattered and harder to locate. The best place to look for reds may be holes in the smaller creeks.
Trout have also been sparse, but to increase your odds of catching them you absolutely have to have live shrimp.
Meanwhile, the flounder fishing is starting to pick up to the south, and any day now more fish should be caught around the border.
Wind has limited their ability to get out to the nearshore reefs, but when they have been able to go Captain Buddy reports the Atlantic bonito should be out there for about another week. There have also been some gray trout on the reefs, while the Spanish mackerel are starting to get absolutely thick. In addition to trolling they can be caught casting jigging spoons.
